Frank's Nursery & Crafts
Encyclopedia
Frank's Nursery & Crafts was a United States
retailer devoted to the sale of lawn
and garden
product
s. It operated a chain of stores, with 170 outlets across 14 state
s. It specialized in products such as shrub
s, tree
s, accent plant
s, flower
s, and lawn furniture
.
. Known as "never closed and never undersold," the business became profitable. The market soon began to carry Christmas trees, annuals, and other plants in addition to its mainstay of produce and other goods
for 79¢. The profits on the geranium were much higher than that on the coffee. This incident led Sherr and Weinberg to notice there was to be much more money made selling flowers. Soon after, Frank's Market began selling ferns, trees, lawn chemicals, and other landscaping supplies.
Since lawn-and-garden sales were dependent on season, the business was cyclical in nature, with highest revenues during the growing season. This led Sherr and Weinberg to devise a method to keep sales high during the winter months. In 1966, Frank's Trims, a store which only sold craft goods, opened its doors. The company's headquarters remained in Detroit, Michigan. In 1966 Frank's acquired five garden centers from the Green Giant Company
.
By its 25th anniversary in 1971, Frank's had 51 locations in five states, employing approximately 1200 workers. Sales had reached approximately $37.2 million with a net profit of $1.13 million. During this time, Frank Sherr was succeeded by his son, I. William Sherr, who had previously served the company as executive vice-president and treasurer. Max Weinberg continued to serve as company president.
In 1982, it acquired many former A&P stores.
It acquired Philadelphia-based Gaudio's
in 1988.
In 1983, Frank's Nursery & Crafts was purchased by General Host Corporation. General Host bought 96 percent of Frank's shares in a $19-a-share tender offer
in March 1983; the value of the sale was thus approximately $42.4 million. Frank's, at that time, spanned 95 stores.
Following its acquisition by General Host Corporation, Frank's used its parent company's wealth to go on an acquisition spree with the ultimate goal of becoming the first national garden center chain in the United States. Their first target was the New York-to-Washington, D.C. corridor. From 1983 to 1987, the company acquired 43 garden centers in the New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore/Washington, D.C., metropolitan areas: 39 Flower Time Centers in the NYC metro area (acquired in 1986 and merged into Frank's stores by 1989), 14 Scott's Centers in the Baltimore/Washington, D.C., metro area (1986), and 12 independent garden centers in and around Philadelphia. In addition to its acquisitions, the company was also expanding its footprint southward, with new stores in Virginia, Florida, Georgia, and Tennessee. By 1990, Frank's had almost 300 stores.
and Chicago
.
because it could not afford to pay its vendors
. Matters were taken to bankruptcy court
, where questions arose as to whether or not Frank's could avoid shutting down its retail stores. The matter was resolved, and the company was able to recover and continue full operation.
In September 2004, company officials again filed for Chapter 11. The company was heavily in debt
, particularly in relation to their vendors. On September 8, of that year the decision was finally made to cease the operation of each of its 170 stores. Agreements were made with Kimco Capital Liquidation Company, which allowed for closing-down sales to be held in every outlet. After the closure of Frank's, the buildings—with a unique half outdoor, half indoor layout—have been slow to be reoccupied in an over-built retail market.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
retailer devoted to the sale of lawn
Lawn
A lawn is an area of aesthetic and recreational land planted with grasses or other durable plants, which usually are maintained at a low and consistent height. Low ornamental meadows in natural landscaping styles are a contemporary option of a lawn...
and garden
Garden
A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the display, cultivation, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The garden can incorporate both natural and man-made materials. The most common form today is known as a residential garden, but the term garden has...
product
Product (business)
In general, the product is defined as a "thing produced by labor or effort" or the "result of an act or a process", and stems from the verb produce, from the Latin prōdūce ' lead or bring forth'. Since 1575, the word "product" has referred to anything produced...
s. It operated a chain of stores, with 170 outlets across 14 state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
s. It specialized in products such as shrub
Shrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
s, tree
Tree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
s, accent plant
Plant
Plants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...
s, flower
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...
s, and lawn furniture
Furniture
Furniture is the mass noun for the movable objects intended to support various human activities such as seating and sleeping in beds, to hold objects at a convenient height for work using horizontal surfaces above the ground, or to store things...
.
Frank's Market
In 1942, Frank Sherr and his nephew-in-law, Max Weinberg, opened a food market, known as Frank's Market, on the northeast side of DetroitDetroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
. Known as "never closed and never undersold," the business became profitable. The market soon began to carry Christmas trees, annuals, and other plants in addition to its mainstay of produce and other goods
Frank begins a greenhouse
In 1949, Sherr and Weinberg purchased a vacant lot across the street from the market to house the growing number of plants the market offered. According to Sherr, the greenhouse was opened after a bout with a customer that complained the price of coffee at Frank's Market was too high but then willingly purchased a potted geraniumPelargonium
Pelargonium is a genus of flowering plants which includes about 200 species of perennials, succulents, and shrubs, commonly known as scented geraniums or storksbills. Confusingly, Geranium is the correct botanical name of a separate genus of related plants often called Cranesbills. Both Geranium...
for 79¢. The profits on the geranium were much higher than that on the coffee. This incident led Sherr and Weinberg to notice there was to be much more money made selling flowers. Soon after, Frank's Market began selling ferns, trees, lawn chemicals, and other landscaping supplies.
Growth
The business thrived, and in 1957 the company—by then four stores strong—incorporated, becoming Frank's Nursery Sales, Inc. By 1965 Frank's owned 18 stores throughout Michigan, and its sales were $11.35 million, with a net income of $509,000.Since lawn-and-garden sales were dependent on season, the business was cyclical in nature, with highest revenues during the growing season. This led Sherr and Weinberg to devise a method to keep sales high during the winter months. In 1966, Frank's Trims, a store which only sold craft goods, opened its doors. The company's headquarters remained in Detroit, Michigan. In 1966 Frank's acquired five garden centers from the Green Giant Company
Green Giant
Green Giant and Le Sueur are brands of frozen and canned vegetables owned by General Mills. The mascot of Green Giant is the Jolly Green Giant....
.
By its 25th anniversary in 1971, Frank's had 51 locations in five states, employing approximately 1200 workers. Sales had reached approximately $37.2 million with a net profit of $1.13 million. During this time, Frank Sherr was succeeded by his son, I. William Sherr, who had previously served the company as executive vice-president and treasurer. Max Weinberg continued to serve as company president.
Frank's Nursery & Crafts, Inc.
In 1980, Frank's Nursery Sales officially changed its name to Frank's Nursery & Crafts, Inc. to emphasize both the lawn-and-garden and craft sector of its operation. Sales reached $119.3 million, and 80 locations were in operation. Much of Frank's expansion into different markets can be linked to the purchase of small regional chains.In 1982, it acquired many former A&P stores.
It acquired Philadelphia-based Gaudio's
Penn Fruit
The Penn Fruit Company was a regional grocery chain in the Philadelphia and Baltimore areas that operated from 1927 until 1978. During the firm’s history it was regarded as one of the most innovative American supermarket chains...
in 1988.
In 1983, Frank's Nursery & Crafts was purchased by General Host Corporation. General Host bought 96 percent of Frank's shares in a $19-a-share tender offer
Tender offer
Tender offer is a corporate finance term denoting a type of takeover bid. The tender offer is a public, open offer or invitation by a prospective acquirer to all stockholders of a publicly traded corporation to tender their stock for sale at a specified price during a specified time, subject to...
in March 1983; the value of the sale was thus approximately $42.4 million. Frank's, at that time, spanned 95 stores.
Following its acquisition by General Host Corporation, Frank's used its parent company's wealth to go on an acquisition spree with the ultimate goal of becoming the first national garden center chain in the United States. Their first target was the New York-to-Washington, D.C. corridor. From 1983 to 1987, the company acquired 43 garden centers in the New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore/Washington, D.C., metropolitan areas: 39 Flower Time Centers in the NYC metro area (acquired in 1986 and merged into Frank's stores by 1989), 14 Scott's Centers in the Baltimore/Washington, D.C., metro area (1986), and 12 independent garden centers in and around Philadelphia. In addition to its acquisitions, the company was also expanding its footprint southward, with new stores in Virginia, Florida, Georgia, and Tennessee. By 1990, Frank's had almost 300 stores.
Christmas by Frank's
In 1990, the first three Frank's stand-alone Christmas stores, Christmas by Frank's, opened. These stores were temporary installations placed in high-volume regional malls located in trade areas where Frank's also operated conventional stores. The Christmas stores provided shoppers with a convenient store (3,000-5,000 sq ft) where they were able to purchase holiday decorations, crafts and gift-wrap without making a separate stop. Frank's was pleased with the results, and the following year, the company operated 100 of the temporary stores. Indeed, Christmas decorations and crafts has become increasingly important lines to Frank's, helping to compensate for the seasonal sales declines in gardening supplies. Sales in 1992 grew to $558 million, a seven percent increase over the previous year, yet higher costs and interest on General Host's debt caused its profits to decline, from $8.7 million in 1991 to $2.9 million in 1992.Frank's SuperCrafts
In 1993, the company launched Frank's SuperCrafts, opening two stores in the Detroit area. Designed as "superstores," the SuperCrafts stores encompassed 20000 square feet (1,858.1 m²) of retail space, allowing for a wider selection of craft supplies and home and holiday decorations, while incorporating in-store framing shops and floral arrangement services. Moreover, the stores featured hundreds of craft project displays, giving customers creative ideas and allowing them to see firsthand completed projects. A third SuperCrafts store opened in Philadelphia in 1994, and two more followed the same year; one each in New JerseyNew Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
and Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
.
Money cuts
By 1994, in fact, General Host's headlong expansion had come to an end, as a series of new stores proved unprofitable. In January, Frank's announced the closure of 26 stores, most of which were in the Nashville, Tennessee, area and in Florida. Company officials announced that such sales and closings would save General Host $3.8 million annually; other cuts were to come in $25 million worth of inventory, all of which would help service General Host's $238 million in debt.Bankruptcy and liquidation
In May 2002, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcyChapter 11, Title 11, United States Code
Chapter 11 is a chapter of the United States Bankruptcy Code, which permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Chapter 11 bankruptcy is available to every business, whether organized as a corporation or sole proprietorship, and to individuals, although it is most...
because it could not afford to pay its vendors
Merchant
A merchant is a businessperson who trades in commodities that were produced by others, in order to earn a profit.Merchants can be one of two types:# A wholesale merchant operates in the chain between producer and retail merchant...
. Matters were taken to bankruptcy court
United States bankruptcy court
United States bankruptcy courts are courts created under Article I of the United States Constitution. They function as units of the district courts and have subject-matter jurisdiction over bankruptcy cases. The federal district courts have original and exclusive jurisdiction over all cases arising...
, where questions arose as to whether or not Frank's could avoid shutting down its retail stores. The matter was resolved, and the company was able to recover and continue full operation.
In September 2004, company officials again filed for Chapter 11. The company was heavily in debt
Debt
A debt is an obligation owed by one party to a second party, the creditor; usually this refers to assets granted by the creditor to the debtor, but the term can also be used metaphorically to cover moral obligations and other interactions not based on economic value.A debt is created when a...
, particularly in relation to their vendors. On September 8, of that year the decision was finally made to cease the operation of each of its 170 stores. Agreements were made with Kimco Capital Liquidation Company, which allowed for closing-down sales to be held in every outlet. After the closure of Frank's, the buildings—with a unique half outdoor, half indoor layout—have been slow to be reoccupied in an over-built retail market.